The problem with this take is that there are worse things than death, and we have no way of knowing how a life and that life’s art would have turned out with a little less excess. If you don’t believe the initial part of that sentence, you could have asked Syd Barrett for over 40 years. But, though living, he would not have been able to answer you. Art may require exploration beyond typical boundaries; does it require excess with none?
I agree that it's an interesting scenario: did this mortal recklessness help the art? Would the art have been made with just a little more compromise? I personally think reckless addiction is the byproduct of the solipsistic narcissism of the tragic stars here - they couldn't compromise and therefore the art was as uncompromised as the indulgence.
Ray Manzarek said that if he could say anything to Jim in retrospect, it would have been to "put the bottle down." But they were all there watching it and essentially enabling it due to the size of Morrison's uncompromised presence. Densmore is the one who has the clear-eyed view of that self-indulgent legacy - Morrison just taught people to justify their partying.
Some great prose in this one: "industrially incendiary cruelties" and "meat sauce of sins, scenes, and sentences" in particular jump off the page 🤝 Can't wait for ghost stories in Part Two on the commute home!
As always, you find a nice angle on Life and Art and their interplay. I think the object lesson of Morrison and the 27 Club is a paradox: that chemical transcendence enlivens and enriches life, even as it subtracts it. Would be curious to read a take on Leonard Cohen someday - he's a poet-musician of a very different stripe, but his verses have a deep and singular magic too.
I love the observations here, especially the line about how, if you die at 27, you never have time for doubts, and about how so much of making art means letting your "unconscious take the steering wheel." But I think the most profound thing you say here about Morrison is that he channeled for the art, not the audience. Seems like today's writers, artists, and musicians are all too aware of that audience because of social media. That makes it a lot harder to unleash the unconscious.
The problem with this take is that there are worse things than death, and we have no way of knowing how a life and that life’s art would have turned out with a little less excess. If you don’t believe the initial part of that sentence, you could have asked Syd Barrett for over 40 years. But, though living, he would not have been able to answer you. Art may require exploration beyond typical boundaries; does it require excess with none?
I agree that it's an interesting scenario: did this mortal recklessness help the art? Would the art have been made with just a little more compromise? I personally think reckless addiction is the byproduct of the solipsistic narcissism of the tragic stars here - they couldn't compromise and therefore the art was as uncompromised as the indulgence.
Ray Manzarek said that if he could say anything to Jim in retrospect, it would have been to "put the bottle down." But they were all there watching it and essentially enabling it due to the size of Morrison's uncompromised presence. Densmore is the one who has the clear-eyed view of that self-indulgent legacy - Morrison just taught people to justify their partying.
Some great prose in this one: "industrially incendiary cruelties" and "meat sauce of sins, scenes, and sentences" in particular jump off the page 🤝 Can't wait for ghost stories in Part Two on the commute home!
As always, you find a nice angle on Life and Art and their interplay. I think the object lesson of Morrison and the 27 Club is a paradox: that chemical transcendence enlivens and enriches life, even as it subtracts it. Would be curious to read a take on Leonard Cohen someday - he's a poet-musician of a very different stripe, but his verses have a deep and singular magic too.
I love the observations here, especially the line about how, if you die at 27, you never have time for doubts, and about how so much of making art means letting your "unconscious take the steering wheel." But I think the most profound thing you say here about Morrison is that he channeled for the art, not the audience. Seems like today's writers, artists, and musicians are all too aware of that audience because of social media. That makes it a lot harder to unleash the unconscious.
I agree on the self-consciousness of art today. I think it takes away from the art and the artist a lot of the time. Bring back unconscious art!
I'm only a casual Doors fan and had no idea that Morrison's father was that particular soldier. Talk about a real life Greek myth.
It’s almost too on the nose to be believed!
Crazy!
A few mistakes here.
It is not confirmed that Morrison died of an overdose. There was no autopsy.
Also, Danny Sugerman is erroneously referred to as Danny Superman.